THE WEEK IN HEALTHCARE;WELLCARE NAMES MOREY NEW CEO

The board of WellCare Management Group announced last week that Robert W. Morey has been appointed chief executive officer of the Kingston, N.Y.-based HMO, immediately replacing Edward A. Ullmann.

WellCare said Ullmann will remain as a director of the company and as its president, responsible for day-to-day operations.

Morey is WellCare's second-largest shareholder and has been a founding investor in many HMOs, including Oxford Health Plans and HealthSource.

WellCare also said its annual 10K filing will be delayed further while the company and auditors determine whether previously released financial results need to be restated. The publicly traded HMO and its auditors requested more time to file its annual financial report following a March 18 article in Barron's that questioned the plan's financials, describing "a series of odd transactions that allowed WellCare to show inflated profits in the year after coming public."

WellCare officials were not elaborating on last week's press statement.

Recently, in an open letter published in several local papers, Ullmann said the company is "financially and operationally secure." He said the company cannot comment on issues raised by Barron's until the outside audit is complete and its board of directors and attorneys advise otherwise.